Municipal News

Last Updated on Saturday, 29 October 2016 00:14

By J.R. Brower

The Sunoco Mariner East Pipeline Project through Nottingham Township is now in its completion stages. The matter was discussed at the October 17 meeting of the Nottingham Township Board of Supervisors.

The project, which will result in delivery of natural gas liquids (NGLs) from Houston, PA to Butler County and then on to the east coast, was begun in 2014. Aside from some minor right-of-way issues, the project proceeded fairly rapidly, despite low prices for oil and gas for the last several years.

Last summer, Public Works Department Director and Board Supervisor Doug King said that a major section of Munntown Road would have to have base repairs, resurfacing and cross pipe replacements done as a result of the Sunoco project. He reiterated at the meeting that the township’s road repair as a result of the gas-line project was concentrated mostly on the area of Munntown between Valley View Road and Green Valley Road.

According to a Sunoco Logistic press release, the Mariner East project transports NGLs from the Marcellus and Utica Shales areas in Western Pennsylvania, West Virginia and Eastern Ohio to destinations in eastern Pennsylvania, where they are processed, stored and distributed to local, domestic and waterborne markets.

The second phase of the project, referred to as Mariner East 2, will expand the total takeaway capacity to 345 thousand barrels per day for interstate and intrastate propane, ethane and butane service, and is expected to commence operations in the first half of 2017.

In other business, the Nottingham supervisors:
• Acknowledged receipt of correspondence from PennDOT regarding their intent to develop bridge repair construction plans for State Road 1059 over Mingo Creek. The next meeting to formalize plans with local officials will take place directly at the bridge on November 1 at 12:45 p.m.
• Discussed information from the Peters Creek Sanitary Authority (PCSA) stating that the total tap allotment number of 150 for the year 2016 has already been reached. The authority strongly urges anyone to consider building needs now and in the future to purchase sewer taps that are available. In September, PCSA’s sanitary sewer tap-in fee increased to $2,250.
• Received notification on planned gas drilling activities for the following sites, the John Marchezak wells in Somerset Township by Range Resources and well permit renewals from Rice Energy for their Master Splinter gas well, also in Somerset Township.